Leaving You
by Hyuuga-Awesomeness
Summary: Sorata x Arashi oneshot. Based on what happens between them in episodes 20 and onwards of the TV series X. As such, it contains spoilers for those episodes. Being rewritten, please ignore for now


**Disclaimer: **I think it's pretty damn obvious that I don't own any of these characters.

This is based on what happens between Arashi and Sorata in the final few episodes of X. Don't read it if you haven't seen **episodes 20-24** of X because, not only will it not make sense, but it includes some rather extreme **spoilers**.

Every time you see a triple-dash (---) between paragraphs, it indicates a change in time and venue. The time change could be a few minutes or it could be a few days, it depends… A single dash (-) between paragraphs simply indicates a change in venue.

Leaving You

Arashi felt her newly softened heart shatter into a thousand pieces as she realised what she had to do. She had to do it to save him. So he could continue to live.

She slipped silently out of the door, trying not to look back. She had made it as far as the hall before someone saw her.

"Arashi-san?" Yuzuriha asked, "Where are you going?"

"Out. For a walk." Arashi replied shortly.

"How's Sorata-san?"

Arashi had been prepared for this question but not for the tidal wave of tears the name brought forth to her eyes.

"He's…" she began, turning her face away, "he's a lot better, he was almost conscious."

"That's great!" the younger girl cried, jumping up and down on the balls of her feet, "I'm going to go tell Kamui-san." With that, she bounced down the hallway, round a corner and out of sight, leaving Arashi to make her quiet exit through the front door.

The shrine-maiden walked solemnly along the road, she could not muster the energy to jump between rooftops. Tears poured silently down her face as she walked but the street was mercifully deserted.

As she came into the shadow of a tall, imposing building, Arashi realised that there really was no turning back. She took a calming breath and entered the headquarters of the Chi no Ryu.

---

"I-It can't be…nee-chan?" Sorata gasped as he looked up at her, standing on the rooftop alongside Nataku of the Chi no Ryu. Nataku turned away and disappeared into the stormy night.

"Arashi-san…" a bloodstained Yuzuriha whispered from beside an unconscious Kusanagi. "He was the one that protected me! Why did you do this?!" the girl let out in a strangled yell.

"Why, nee-chan?!" Sorata shouted angrily.

"Kishuu Arashi of the Ten no Ryu is gone." Arashi replied. Her voice was cold and hard and her face was set and unfeeling but her heart and mind were in turmoil. "I am now of the Chi no Ryu!" and with that, she turned and sped away, following Nataku across the roofs.

"Wait!" Sorata yelled and followed too.

"T-This is too cruel, Arashi-san," Yuzuriha whimpered tremulously as she turned back to the still form of Kusanagi lying on the ground.

---

Sorata continued to tail Arashi across the storm swept sky no matter how quickly she travelled or how winding she made her path. Eventually, she decided to make him leave. She alighted on the ground next to a railway line. Sorata landed too.

"I was worried, you disappeared without leaving a note or saying a word! I didn't know what the hell had happened!" Sorata yelled at her, "What's this about?! Tell me your reasons!"

Arashi turned swiftly away on the spot but Sorata grabbed hold of her wrist shouting, "Wait!" She turned back towards him and struck him hard in the stomach with the handle of her katana, which she had been carrying since she slashed Kusanagi. Sorata fell heavily to the ground and spat blood. She pointed the blade of the sword into his face.

"I thought I told you," her throat felt constricted but she had long since taught herself to stop emotion showing in her voice, "I'm with the Chi no Ryu now."

Lightning flashed and thunder rolled ominously in the otherwise silent moment.

"Y-You can't be serious, nee-chan..."

A blinding light swept the scene as something large quickly approached along the rails Arashi was standing on, still with her blade pointed at Sorata.

Just before the train reached her, Arashi stepped back, to the other side from Sorata and he was lost from view. She turned her back and fled.

When the last of the train's carriages had disappeared, Sorata saw that Arashi, too, had gone. Again.

"Nee-chan…"

---

Arashi stood on a platform at the edge of Tokyo Tower, dwelling on what Sorata had told her as they stood on top of a building, keeping an eye on Kamui as he watched Fuuma play basketball. At that point, Fuuma had not yet awakened as Kamui's Gemini.

"_The old stargazer at Kouya told me that my destiny is to meet Kamui, become his companion and protect him, but when I die, it will be for the sake of the woman I love… I have decided that it is you I will give my life for…" _

Arashi's thoughts turned to what Fuuma had told her recently.

"To change destiny and save his soul, you need to kill the Kamui of the Ten no Ryu…" I must kill Kamui… 

-

As Sorata sped across rooftops near Tokyo Tower, his thoughts were of Arashi.

_Arashi, don't do anything stupid. If you do anything to Kamui… I will kill you…_

---

Arashi stood on that same part of the Tower as Kamui approached Fuuma. Each was carrying one of the Shinken. Kamui attempted to attack Fuuma but he blocked easily.

"I am not your opponent," he laughed, gesturing towards Arashi.

Arashi recognised her cue and jumped from the Tower. With one swipe of her katana, she disarmed Kamui in his moment of confusion. As she continued to attack him, he dodged and tried to talk her back to 'sense'. But she knew exactly what she was doing. She slashed at him again and again and succeeded in landing strikes across his face and one of his arms. Kamui's distracted dodging had backed him up against a dead-end.

Just as Arashi prepared to make the fatal blow, Sorata arrived and called at her from another part of the Tower to stop. She looked around at him for a second, then back at Kamui. She closed her eyes briefly and raised her sword.

"I said STOP!" Sorata yelled, throwing a ball of blinding blue electricity at Arashi, blowing up the walkway she was standing on and sending her crashing to the ground.

She just managed to land in a standing position and regained her balance as Sorata called to her,

"I'm of the Ten no Ryu. It's my duty to protect Kamui as long as I'm alive!"

At that, Arashi picked up her sword and Sorata called forth another ball of electricity. Kamui yelled at them from the tower to stop but they took no notice. They sprinted towards each other, both with murderous intent upon their faces. Yet, as each weapon was on the point of striking the other person, they found neither could do so.

Both of them stood there, looking at each other. Sorata's electricity crackled and died in his hand. Arashi's sword tip trembled before Sorata's throat.

A moment passed in which nobody moved and nothing made a sound.

Suddenly, the Tower above them exploded and vast pieces crashed down, flinging Sorata far away. Other pieces crashed down upon the walkway Kamui was standing on, sending him flying into the distance.

As the dust cleared, Fuuma was visible holding Arashi by the neck.

"You betrayed me as a Chi no Ryu. There is only one path left for you now: to accept your own death." He threw her to the ground, "Right?" He raised the Shinken.

As he brought it down, stabbing the very air, blood splattered and a muffled cry of pain could be heard. Arashi looked up in slight confusion at the lack of pain and felt her heart skip a couple of beats.

The point of the Shinken's blade was inches from her face, sticking out of the back of someone wearing a yellow jacket.

"S-Sorata…" she said, weakly.

"It was his destiny. Everything you did was futile. And you're next," Fuuma explained coolly. He began to draw the sword out of Sorata but a strong hand prevented it from moving.

"Unfortunately for you, I won't be letting you do that." Sorata croaked. Dazzlingly bright blue-white electricity seared through the Shinken via Sorata's hand and into Fuuma's left hand.

"Sorata-san!" Arashi cried.

Sorata redoubled the force of his final attack and all of the flesh on the left side of Fuuma's body was burnt away. The electricity engulfed most of Tokyo Tower and could have been seen for miles and miles around.

As the ball of power died away, Kamui reached the scene and saw Sorata fall limply.

"SORATA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Kamui and Arashi screamed in unison.

Arashi caught hold of Sorata's body just as it hit the ground.

"Sorata! Hold on! Sorata!" Arashi sobbed as she knelt on the ground. "I don't want you to die! Please don't die!"

Sorata's eyelids flickered. "N-Nee-chan…Y-You're not hurt, right?" each word seemed to cost all the strength he had left.

"Why did you do this?" Arashi whispered.

"This is how it should be." He replied. He turned to Kamui "Please forgive nee-chan, she did it all for me…to protect me…"

"I understand," Kamui managed a faint smile. "Sorata, it's fine now."

"Old man…" Sorata had turned his face to the sky, "I did it…just like you said…I protected Kamui…and for a woman's sake-"

"NO!" Arashi screamed. "Please don't die!"

"Please don't cry," Sorata smiled weakly, "I can't stand to see a woman cry…"

Tears continued to pour from Arashi's eyes as she looked at Sorata, life fading from his eyes.

With the last of his strength, Sorata took hold of Arashi's hand and whispered "Promise me, nee-chan, that you'll live on for the two of us…that'll be the only proof that I existed…can you promise me, nee-chan…that you'll live?"

Arashi nodded her head, tears still coursing down her face.

He managed a smile and said "You know, you really are beautiful…I'm such a lucky guy…I'm glad I was able to meet you…nee-chan…" his eyes dulled as the glimmer of life he had grasped for so long escaped from him.

Arashi's vision was completely blurred by tears as, as far as she was concerned, the entire world crashed around them and ended.


End file.
